


I Would Give My Life Before I Break This Promise to You

by 221BSunsetTowers



Series: Bad Things Happen Bingo Stories [14]
Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Bad Things Happen Bingo, Caring Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV), First Kiss, Getting Together, Hurt Evan "Buck" Buckley, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Pre-Relationship Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz, Protective Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV), Rescue, Worried Eddie Diaz
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-10
Updated: 2021-02-10
Packaged: 2021-03-15 23:06:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,646
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29322144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/221BSunsetTowers/pseuds/221BSunsetTowers
Summary: It should have been a relatively simple rescue operation, but now Buck is literally pinned to the telephone pole and Eddie won't leave him behind.In which Buck gets shot by crossbow bolts while trying to rescue a wounded man at the top of the telephone pole, and Eddie risks his life to make sure Buck gets down alive.
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV)
Series: Bad Things Happen Bingo Stories [14]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1826659
Comments: 9
Kudos: 442
Collections: Bad Things Happen Bingo





	I Would Give My Life Before I Break This Promise to You

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Shot by an Arrow in Bad Things Happen Bingo.
> 
> Thanks so much to 9-1-1 Lone Star for providing me with crossbow lady shooting at the telephone pole, thus allowing me to figure out how to get Buck and Eddie shot by arrows!
> 
> Thanks so much to buddiebuddie and moviegeek03 for being amazing soundboards and advice givers and cheerleaders as I tried to plot out and finish this story!

"The person who called it in thought he might have had a heart attack," Bobby said, gesturing towards the telephone pole. Almost at the very top, they could just see a man slumped backwards, unmoving.

"Both of them?" Chimney asked in disbelief, crouching down next to another unmoving man, this one sprawled on the ground directly next to the telephone pole. Hen knelt by the man's head, gently examining the bloody wound on the back of his scalp. Picking up the two pieces of the nearby safety rope, Chim held one piece in each hand. "It looks like something snapped this right in two."

"Be careful up there," Bobby cautioned, as Eddie finished putting on his harness and checking that Buck's was secure. "Eddie, we need Hen and Chim down here to handle the injuries from the fall, so check him out as quickly as you can, and then you and Buck bring him down fast. Something seems off here."

"Got it," Eddie and Buck responded at the exact same time, and they both chose to ignore the laughter coming from Hen, Chimney, and if they looked close enough, even Bobby.

"I'll head up first so I can start evaluating," Eddie said, beginning the ascent, Buck waiting until Eddie was high up enough for him to start climbing too.

"Yeah, there's a lot of blood, definitely not a heart attack," Eddie commented, reaching the unconscious man. He had just started examining the wound when a loud thwack sounded, followed by another. "Shit, what the hell?" Scrambling up on the small ledge, Eddie immediately reached down to grab Buck's hand and swing him up next to him, but Buck didn't reach back. 

"Kinda stuck here, Eds," he heard Buck groan out, and Eddie's breath caught in his throat. He slid his upper body over the edge, hoping against hope he wouldn't see his fear manifested, but there was Buck, pinned to the pole by a crossbow bolt straight through the right side of his stomach. Blood was dripping far too fast down his side, and Eddie heard a whimper of pain escape from Buck's lips.

"It's okay, Buck, it's going to be okay," Eddie promised, voice shaking, as he reached for his radio. "Guys, we need some help here, fast! Someone's shooting at us, they've got a crossbow, and Buck's hit! We're pinned down, they-" Quickly scanning the houses nearby, Eddie fought back the terrifying memories of being pinned under fire, of death and bullets and knowing he couldn't save everyone...Buck didn't have the time...Eddie called up his training instead, spying the window cracked up and radioing down the location. 

"Eddie, you need to get out of here," Buck begged, as another thwack sounded just next to Eddie's hand, the bolt quivering as it stuck fast in the wooden pole. 

"Not happening, Buck," Eddie swore, and he could see Buck start to shake his head.

"Eddie, please, you need to go!" Buck pleaded, and Eddie could see the blood, the pain, the life draining out of Buck's eyes, even though everything was blurring and hazing through Eddie's frantic tears and---

"Buck, I'd throw myself over you like a shield, okay?" Eddie finally snapped, and even through the fog of pain those words cut straight through to Buck. "Trust me, that was my first instinct. It's taking everything I have in me not to do it. But that would be only be a short term fix, okay? We need to get you safe and down from here, and that means I'm coming over to cut through that bolt."

Before Buck could answer, there was another loud thwack and Eddie felt his heart leave his body as another bolt shot straight through Buck's side again, and Buck screamed in pain before going completely limp, dangling from the harness, still pinned there by the two arrows piercing his body.

Eddie screamed, gutteral and raw and world-ending, throwing himself over the ledge, fingers scrambling to find a purchase on the side of Buck's neck. When he finally felt the too slow but still present pulse, Eddie let out a ragged sob, before beginning to cut off just enough of the first bolt to free Buck, but still keep the majority inside his body and stable so he wouldn't bleed out in Eddie's arms. And wasn't that a thought Eddie never, ever wanted to have flash through his brain again.

This time there wasn't any noise, the bolt digging itself in and through the meat of Eddie's shoulder but not close enough to reach the wood of the pole. Gritting his teeth, Eddie kept moving, taking Buck's weight on despite the agony shooting through his arm, focusing everything he had on cutting through that last bolt and lowering them both down.  
He didn't register anything else, didn't even notice the arrows had stopped flying, that his team had found their way into the house and stopped that danger. Later he would be ashamed he'd forgotten about the injured man that had originally brought them here, but Bobby would assure him that someone else had gone up right after and grabbed him, that the man was going to be okay.

When they reached the bottom of the pole, Eddie quickly unhooked Buck's harness before freeing his own. Clutching Buck in his arms, he stumbled towards the ambulance, feeling Hen and Chimney and Bobby around him, but refusing to relinquish Buck to anyone else. It wasn't until he saw Buck safely onto the stretcher that Eddie let his own eyes close, collapsing onto the ambulance floor.

****

Eddie's eyes shot open, once again ignoring his throbbing shoulder as he fought to sit up. Maddie was immediately in his line of sight, gently easing him back down with a soft smile. "He's okay, Eddie, I promise, Buck's okay," she murmured reassuringly, "you saved him." 

Maddie looked to her right and Eddie followed her gaze, tears springing to his eyes as he saw Buck resting peacefully on a hospital bed just a few feet away. He couldn't tear his eyes away from the steady rise and fall of Buck's chest, the gauze expertly covering the wounds on his stomach.

"Can you-please-"Eddie couldn't even find the words, every one of his senses attuned to the man so close yet far too far away. But Maddie knew immediately what he meant, good-naturedly rolling her eyes as she beckoned to Chimney, who had just entered the room. 

"We tried to tell them to just stick you two in the same bed..." Chim teased gently, earning a grateful smile from Maddie as Eddie let out a shaky laugh. Sliding under Eddie's good shoulder, Chim gingerly eased him the few feet to Buck's bedside, lowering him down into the chair as Maddie followed with the IV and readjusted Eddie's sling.

"The doctors say he'll definitely need to take a while to recover, but no vital organs were hit, and you keeping the bolts in kept him from bleeding out," Maddie said, eyes filling with tears as she bent down and pressed a soft kiss to the top of Eddie's head. "You saved his life, Eddie, I can never, ever thank you enough for that."

"There's nothing I wouldn't do for him," Eddie stated simply, unable to find it within himself to have a single anxiety about speaking those words out loud to someone else. 

"He feels the same about you," Maddie answered with a smile, squeezing Eddie's hand. "I'll let him fill you in on that himself when he wakes up. What I can tell you is the others are still giving their statements to the police. The team got them to interview Chimney first so he could come be with me."

"Turns out the crossbow lady was convinced the telephone companies were using their equipment to send out energy beams that would bring about an apocalypse," Chimney said with a sigh and a shake of his head. "Not gonna lie Eddie, watching that from the ground...I'm just really glad you're both okay." 

***

The same second Eddie felt Buck's fingers twitch in his hand, he heard the voice he knew better than his own mumbling an "Eddie?", face scrunching up in discomfort and confusion. Then "Eddie!" Buck suddenly yelled, flailing as he tried to get himself upright.

"I'm here," Eddie said urgently, squeezing Buck's hand, letting out a sigh of relief when Buck met his gaze and immediately calmed down. Seeing Buck's gaze land on Eddie's sling, Buck's eyes immediately filling with fear, Eddie carefully slid the top of his sling to the side so Buck could see the patch of bandages and gauze. "One of the bolts got me, but it looks to me like it's just fine. Hurts, but still full range of motion." Sighing, Eddie let his sling fall back into place, clutching Buck's hand in his again.

"You got hit by one?" Buck's eyes were wide and horrified, and Eddie hurried to speak before Buck could say exactly what Eddie knew he would say.

"I would never have left you," Eddie vowed, bowing his head to press his forehead against Buck's. "You could never have gotten me to leave you. I would have taken every single one of those hits for you if I could have. I promise. You have to know that, Buck."

Tilting his head, Buck lay a soft kiss on Eddie's lips, blinking back tears even while he laughed at the blush tinting Eddie's cheeks. "I hoped you felt the same," Buck murmured, sighing happily as Eddie pressed a kiss behind his ear. "I mean I clearly am not happy about the part where you got hurt, but you're really hot when you're all protective and dramatic."

"Remind me of that when we get home," Eddie said with a grin, kissing Buck's forehead. "I've got some romance to show you too."

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks so much for reading! You can find me at 221BSunsettowers on Tumblr :)


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